Daniel Greene is an artist with an exhibition coming up which he should be excited about, except he isn’t. He can’t sleep, he has no enthusiasm for social activities, and his constant tears and dark thoughts alarm him. When he’s finally diagnosed with depression, he starts the slow process of resisting the dark lure.<br><br>One day Oliver Campbell arrives at Daniel’s gate to deliver art supplies. He’s tall and muscular, and for the first time in a long while, Daniel feels there might be light at the end of the tunnel.<br><br>Yet Oliver has a secret. He has a son, five-year-old Cameron. When he reveals this to Daniel the morning after their first date, Daniel has the courage to reveal his own secret battle with depression. Will these two men be able to accept each other’s secrets and go forward together?

The Darkest Hour

It wasn’t a perfect cure. Despite the fact I was feeling more positive, and for the longest period of time since being diagnosed, there were still small relapses.


One morning, a few days later, I awoke beneath the shadow of a thunder cloud. Almost immediately the phone rang. The shrill ringing darkened my mood.


“Hey sexy. How are you this morning?”


Something about Oliver’s voice, so happy, so positive, triggered something inside me. It was something I couldn’t control; something I didn’t even try to control.


There was a pause. “Gee, I’m sorry.” Another pause. “Is everything all right?”


I was frowning. “Why wouldn’t it be?”


“You woke me up!” I snapped. “Sorry I’m not the life and soul of the party first thing in the morning.”


“It’s nine o’clock,” said Oliver, sounding suitably annoyed. “I thought you’d be up by now. Obviously I was mistaken.”


Chapter 20